Historical Significance
"Remarkable for its legal content, this work is also an exceptional source of information about the society, religion, economy, and history of this period."
-The Louvre
The Code of Hammurabi allows historians to take a look at daily life in ancient Babylon. It is particularly fair for its time as it demands for a trial by judges, rather than vigilante justice. It symbolizes not only the emergence of justice in the minds of men, but also man’s rise above ignorance and barbarism towards peace and justice, which societies still pursue today.
The laws in the Code of Hammurabi established stability, allowing the ancient Babylon Empire to flourish. It allowed all of Babylon's citizens to read the laws that governed their lives, and the laws could not be manipulated by a ruler to suit his or her own goals. Some historians even point to the Code of Hammurabi as evidence for a society more advanced than the early medieval period in Europe.
Image courtesy of: University of Vienna
Video Courtesy of: Dr. Martha Roth, Assyriologist, Oriental Institute
